Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to tackle delays in delivery of food vouchers through the free school meals scheme.

Since the launch of the free school meals voucher scheme, it has been upgraded and is working well for thousands of schools and families. Our supplier Edenred has indicated that orders are currently processed well within the 4-day period specified within our guidance to schools. Edenred has reported that over £169 million worth of voucher codes has been redeemed into supermarket e-gift cards by schools and families through the scheme as of Friday 19 June, and that over 17,500 schools had placed orders for the scheme.